In an otherwise frozen job market, employers\u2019 desire for temporary workers appears to be heating up.<\/p>\n
The number of workers in temp staffing positions has ticked higher this year, moving away from the declines seen over much of 2025. The Federal Reserve even noted the trend in its most recent Beige Book, saying that several of its regional banks had reported \u201cincreased demand for temporary or contract workers, as firms remained cautious about committing to permanent hires.\u201d<\/p>\n
Put simply, bosses still need workers right now \u2014\u00a0but in an economy defined by uncertainty, they\u2019re more reluctant to bet on full-timers.<\/p>\n\n
Bullhorn, a software provider for the staffing and recruitment industry, tracked a 9% jump in temporary worker placements between February and March \u2014\u00a0\u201dsignificantly higher than what we\u2019ve seen on the perm side,\u201d and up 5.4% from a year ago, according to Lia Taniguchi, Bullhorn\u2019s research and insights director. In the first quarter of this year, temporary hours were up, particularly for light industrial workers in manufacturing and warehousing, she added.<\/p>\n
\u201cHiring organizations are way more comfortable right now putting in temporary resources, and that shows in all of our data,\u201d Taniguchi told Yahoo Finance. \u201cWe think that\u2019s going to be true going forward as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not only do temporary and contract workers provide more flexibility for employers adjusting to economic whiplash and constantly changing business needs, but they also provide wiggle room for bosses who don\u2019t know how AI will reshape their labor needs, Taniguchi noted. All of this could make temporary workers particularly appealing to hiring managers.<\/p>\n
\u201cEmployers don\u2019t really know in 18 months how many people they\u2019ll need, because they don\u2019t know how AI may change their workforce needs, but they also don\u2019t even know exactly what skillsets they\u2019re going to need in two years,\u201d Taniguchi said.<\/p>\n
The American Staffing Association\u2019s data, meanwhile, suggests that staffing employment has been growing since September.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sectors that are outperforming the general trend tend to be those that either have significant personnel shortages that employers are trying to backfill, or that are highly specialized,\u201d including healthcare and professional services, said Noah Yosif, the association\u2019s chief economist.<\/p>\n In March, government data showed that employment in temporary help services rose by 4,400 workers from the month prior, employing about 2.47 million people overall. While that level is down significantly from the 3.2 million temp workers notched in March 2022, it was nonetheless the highest number seen since last August.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Do you have a story about navigating the job market? Reach out to Emma Ockerman here.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Just at the staffing app Instawork, there\u2019s been a surge in new businesses signing up to find workers, especially those that need more labor to manage their supply chain needs, according to CEO Sumir Meghani. Flexible employees are a \u201creal asset to businesses who are dealing with volatility for a variety of reasons,\u201d Meghani said.<\/p>\n And between the conflict with Iran pushing up gas prices and global trade tensions, there\u2019s certainly plenty of volatility to go around.<\/p>\n On the other hand, Rick Hermanns, CEO of HireQuest, a national franchisor of staffing companies, noted that while temporary staffing needs have improved this year, that\u2019s coming off three years of unusually slack demand in a period of low unemployment.<\/p>\n \u201cIn some respects, you could view this almost as just a secular recovery from artificial lows,\u201d Hermanns said.<\/p>\n For job-seekers who are discouraged by the bump in temp workers as full-time positions seem few and far between, it\u2019s important to note that temporary roles offer a foot in the door and an opportunity to show off their work ethic. A full-time job might await them on the other side.<\/p>\n \u201cStaffing has always been great \u2014\u00a0and I would argue it\u2019s the best way \u2014\u00a0for a company to recruit,\u201d Hermanns said.<\/p>\n Emma Ockerman<\/em>\u00a0is a reporter covering the economy and labor for Yahoo Finance. You can reach her at\u00a0<\/em>emma.ockerman@yahooinc.com<\/em>.<\/em><\/p>\n![\"NEW](\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/Zzjf.mWp9TkdW7uq0zbn7w--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MA--\/https:\/\/media-mbst-pub-ue1.s3.amazonaws.com\/creatr-uploaded-images\/2026-04\/8807b920-2f51-11f1-bd7d-1a5993382991\")